Pitch Party 2014

Animation Magazine’s 2014 Pitch Party Contest

WHAT’S A PITCH PARTY?

We open up an entire section of our publication (read by more animation decision-makers than any other) to 1/6th page advertisements that pitch new ideas. For less than the cost of a workshop on “breaking into the biz” you can get your great idea in front of our major readers. [NOTE: This opportunity is only available once a year. AND to help you out, we're offering these ads at a heavily discounted price!]

PLUS! We’ve enlisted a panel of ten powerful development execs, producers and agents to judge your entries. The Pitch Party winner will receive a chance to pitch the judge of his or her choice and will receive FREE Pitch Party Participation.

WHO’S JUDGING THIS THING?

Judges to be announced soon.

AND WHAT DO I WIN?

For one thing, a whole lot of print and online coverage! Not only do you get a 1/6th page ad in our print edition, if you’re a winner, you’ll get additional editorial coverage, a chance to pitch your idea to the judge of your choice and the cost of your entry reimbursed. BUT, WAIT! There’s more … (here’s a big list of everything you could get just by entering).

1/6th page in the July edition of Animation Magazine, distributed to readers in over 100 countries with bonus distribution at the San Diego Comic-Con.

A high-powered panel of development execs and producers will personally evaluate your pitch.

If you win, you get to pitch your idea to the Judge of your choice. Plus! You’ll get editorial coverage in our July edition.

If you win, you get FREE Pitch Party Participation.

If you come in second or third, you’ll get editorial coverage in our July edition.

We also run a STAFF PICKS contest. So if our staff picks you, they’ll write about why you won in our July edition.

We run an ONLINE READERS’ POLL using your 1/6th page ad. So for one week your ad will be online and oggled by more than 150,000 unique visitors. AND! You guessed it! We also write about the winners of the online poll in our July edition. (Don’t worry, we monitor our ONLINE READERS’ POLL carefully. No reader can vote more than one time!) The Online Reader’s Poll begins on or around June 16.

HOW DO I ENTER?

1) Contact us to reserve our entry space! Email: [email protected] or call: 818-665-2050
2) Send us the elements of the ad: the image(s), the contact information as you want it to appear in the ad, and your pitch (also to appear on the ad – 30 word max), and we can create the ad for you, or you can create the ad according to the following specs:

Dimensions: 2.25″ wide x 4.875″ high

• Adobe Photoshop Files – Images should be Tiff, Jpeg, EPS or Photoshop file (if EPS or Photoshop file include Fonts). Images should be either Bitmap, Grayscale or CMYK. NO RGB or Indexed Color. Resolution should be 300dpi.
• InDesign Files – Include all used images, printer and screen fonts. Include a PDFx-1a including bleed and cropmarks with your submission.
• Adobe Illustrator Files – Convert all fonts to outlines and save as EPS. Do not leave fonts embedded. If this can’t be done, send printer and screen fonts with your file. Fonts need to be stuffed.

3) The entry fee is $375. Ask about our special student discounts.
4) Materials and payment due by June 12, 2014.

Early Bird discount price: Save $25.00 by reserving your Pitch Party space now and getting your Pitch Party creative to us by May 22, 2014.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How Do I Protect My Idea? Well, the easiest answer is “by entering the Pitch Party.” If you’re pitching your idea in our magazine then your idea has appeared in print with your name attached; your idea is no longer floating around out in the ether for anyone to pick up. To further protect yourself though, we suggest registering your idea with the Writers Guild. Go to www.wga.org for more info.

WHAT KIND OF STUFF CAN I ENTER?

Anything! As long as your idea has the potential to be animated, you can enter a television series, movie, game, whatever!

WHAT SHOULD I ENTER?

Basically an idea that’s different; something our judges haven’t seen before. Most development folks want a show that is “character-driven”. In artist-speak that just means they’re looking for a show that has a strong character at the center of the action and, if it’s a TV show, a character that people can latch onto. Remember to pick a really strong image for your entry, one that describes your show or its main character in a striking visual manner. Concerning your 30-word description, all we can say is re-write, re-write, re-write. Don’t just give us the first thing that trips off your fingertips onto the keyboard and into Microsoft word. Work it! Then read it to your friends. They’ll tell you if they get it or not. (And, we know this sounds dumb, but run a spell check.)

WHEN DO YOU ANNOUNCE THE WINNERS?

As soon as our July issue hits the newsstands, around July 11th. We will also be hyping our winners online during the week of Comic Con July 24-27, 2014 (www.comic-con.org/cci/).

LEGAL STUFF

Animation Magazine is not responsible or liable for ensuring the images used in Pitch Party Participant advertisements are the property of the advertisers/participants.